crimes8public-2591eafe724b25e2.pdf

This report section details the results of the Malawi National Crime Victimisation Survey regarding public perceptions of the police and the courts. Despite significant barriers to physical access and low visibility of uniformed officers, the majority of respondents expressed high levels of trust and satisfaction with both institutions. The report notes that these perceptions may be influenced by the political transition in Malawi and the identity of the survey enumerators.

• Public perception of the Malawi Police Service is overwhelmingly positive, with 70.3% of respondents believing the police are doing a good job, despite limited visibility and access. Women (73.9%) were more likely to hold this positive view than men (67.7%).
• Physical access to police stations is difficult for many Malawians, particularly in rural areas and the Northern Region. While 95.5% of respondents knew where their nearest station was, 40.5% reported it was more than a two-hour walk away, and 63.2% of those in the Northern Region faced this same distance.
• Police visibility is low, especially in rural areas. 57.7% of all interviewed respondents reported they never see a uniformed policeman in their area. Daily visibility of uniformed officers was reported by 26.3% of urban residents compared to only 3.4% of rural residents.
• Direct interaction with police stations appears to improve public opinion; 55% of respondents who visited a station reported that the experience improved their view of the police.
• There is a contradiction between the stated willingness to report crime and actual reporting rates. While 85.4% of respondents said they would report a crime they witnessed, 15% said they would not, primarily due to fear of reprisals (42.9%). This fear was most prevalent in the Central Region (54.6%).
• Public perceptions of the courts are very positive, with 87.7% of respondents believing the courts perform their duties satisfactorily and 85.5% satisfied with how the courts sentence perpetrators. Satisfaction with sentencing was higher in rural areas (86.7%) than urban areas (78.7%).
• Access to courts mirrors the difficulties found with police stations, with 50.7% of respondents reporting a walk of more than two hours to reach the nearest court. Despite this, 42.5% of respondents had visited a court, mostly to observe proceedings (66.2%).

APA

Institute for Security Studies (n.d.). crimes8public-2591eafe724b25e2.pdf. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CRIMES8PUBLIC.PDF

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. crimes8public-2591eafe724b25e2.pdf. n.d. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CRIMES8PUBLIC.PDF.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=crimes8public-2591eafe724b25e2.pdf |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CRIMES8PUBLIC.PDF |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudiesndcrimes8public2591eafe724b25e2pdf, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{crimes8public-2591eafe724b25e2.pdf}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CRIMES8PUBLIC.PDF}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }